Now in Gorakhpur

Hello from the road. The final couple days in Varanasi were fascinating. We went to the Golden Temple in the middle of the oldest part of the city. We were being led through by guides in a maze of very thin walkways shrouded by ancient walls and lined with every type of merchant imagineable. I bought a small collection of tunics, some toys and jewelry -- much to the delight of the local business people, who are very honest and friendly -- and spent less than $20. As we approached the temple, we were checked by militia men no less than five times. We were disallowed from taking cameras, phones, pens and anything else that could conceal or be fashioned into a weapon. The walls and gates leading to the temple were coiled with razor wire. There were soliders with automatic machine guns hunkered down behind cement covers. The threat of violence here is real. Any of the most sacred places among Hindus and Muslims could be a target any time, either for attack or retaliation, depending on which side of the conflict you stand. Closer to the temple, there were many people lining the thin walkways, vines and tropical trees infusing the encampement, breaking the sunlight. Monkeys hung and bounced from every high surface. As I lined with hundreds of others, barefooted and in dripping and dimly lit corridors, to enter, I was approached by one of the guards: "You from U.S., are you of the Hindu Faith?" I replied accordingly and was told I could not enter. I, along with my travel mates, waited to the side as our guides, all Rotarians, entered the temple to pray before the shrine of Shiva. Later that evening we were escorted to one of our host family's homes to attend an all-clubs meeting of the Rotary. There are 16 clubs in Varanasi, which I have been told has an estimated population of 35 million. We gave our presentations, each of us showing photos of our homes, family and workplaces, telling the 200 people in attendance about what we do, how we live. After the presentations were were given gifts, many photos were taken. The following mornign we learned that one of those photos made a Hindi paper that is circulated to more than 2 million readers. Yesterday we made the trip to Gorakhpur. It was a five hour ride with all of us and or luggage in a large Chevy fourwheeler (with a very good hired driver) on a thin highway with much traffic and villages the entire way. It more or less follows the Ganges watershed and had beautiful expanses of farms and villages. We had a bonfire party with Rotarians last night and rested well. Today we visited a garment school and clothing factory where women are given training to enter the workforce. This was an occupational visit for Anne, who is a clothing designer. We also went to the Mother Theresa home where people with mental disabilities who cannot be cared for by their families are given proper shelter, food and medical treatment. Finally, we visited a nature hospital where we were shown a variety of treatments for nearly all illnesses. The means to cure or abate disease involve only water, sun, air and mud. After the tour, we all had full body massages and had a fine meal prepared from the doctor's family garden. What a place! I'm wildly relaxed and glad to be at an Internet cafe (for 20 rupees per hour, which equates to about 75 cents) so I can share some of this with you. We have another presentation tonight, and will leave our hotel tomorrow for Lucknow. I'll try to get photos on here as well, though I'm blind in choosing them. Much love to everyone, and an update again soon. Patrick, on behalf of the Group Study Exchange Team in Uttar Pradesh India.